A market town in Bedfordshire; county town of the county.
Universal has announced the name for its first European theme park in the UK: Universal United Kingdom Resort. Enabling works are underway at Bedfordshire with full construction expected to start soon. The project is backed by up to £5.3 billion in public and private investment and is slated to open in 2031, creating up to 20,000 construction jobs and 8,000 permanent roles.
Two southbound East Midlands Railway services have collided south of Bedford at about 5:15pm on 19 June 2026. Emergency services have declared a major incident; one person has died at the scene. The East of England Ambulance Service has reported 11 very serious injuries, 22 serious injuries and 56 minor injuries.
Two passenger trains bound for London collided near Bedford on Friday evening. One driver has died, and dozens are injured with hospital treatment ongoing. RAIB and British Transport Police are investigating as officials urge patience while facts are gathered.
Two trains south of London collided near Bedford, killing the driver and injuring many passengers. Emergency services responded quickly; investigations are underway to determine the cause as rail officials secure the scene.
A collision between two East Midlands Railway trains near Bedford has left one driver dead and more than 100 people injured. RAIB is investigating after a stationary train unexpectedly braked due to a fault in its AWS system, and a second train failed to stop, colliding at Elstow. Disruption is expected on the Midland Main Line as engineers work to recover the scene.
Nigeria is investigating a fictitious presidential council that allegedly secured 1.3 billion naira in the 2026 budget. Authorities say forged documents created apparent legitimacy, prompting calls for independent inquiry and a government probe.
Nothabo Zandile Tshuma, 42, and her daughters Natalie, 15, and Nala, 5, were found dead at a home in Great Denham, near Bedford. Ndodana Mkhanyisi Tshuma, 45, known as Mark, is suspected of murder and is sought internationally after leaving the UK. Police say the family are deeply mourned and have thanked supporters as the investigation continues.
Ndodana Mkhanyisi Tshuma has been arrested in Johannesburg on arms and murder charges as British authorities push for his extradition over the Bedfordshire killings. South African police say they will process the case alongside the UK extradition request.
Rail investigations show that a driver’s red-signal breach led to a deadly Elstow crash. RAIB interim report points to AWS faults and human error; an inquest has opened as the rail network remains on edge after last month’s collision.
The UK government has announced default settings that will block access to major social apps for 16- and 17-year-olds between midnight and 06:00, and will disable autoplay, infinite scroll and personalised feeds by default. Teenagers will be able to opt out. The measures are part of wider rules that have already banned under-16s from major platforms and follow a government trial of more than 300 families.
East Midlands Railway has temporarily reduced its Intercity timetable after continuing reliability issues with Hitachi Rail’s Class 810 Aurora trains. The move aims to stabilise services as EMR works with Hitachi to resolve faults; some services are cancelled or shortened and refunds are offered.